Maiden voyage: L3 Design Dock opens for Helsinki Design Week

For this year’s Helsinki Design Week, a new harbour-side exhibition space – L3 Design Dock – has opened, housing a small yet special selection of Finnish craft and innovative creations that divert a little from the usual Habitare furniture fare. Taking over the downstairs section of the show, an exhibition of award-winning designer Samuli Naamanka’s multifaceted work called ‘Art and Industry’ is on display

Since being bestowed the title of World Design Capital 2012, Helsinki has been busy instilling the discipline into its cultural DNA. This is the Finnish hub’s 11th annual design week – with over 200 events taking place around town and a Guggenheim museum incoming, it’s conspicuously climbing the global design ranks. For this year’s voyage, a new harbour-side exhibition space – L3 Design Dock – has opened, housing a small yet special selection of Finnish craft and innovative creations that divert a little from the usual Habitare furniture fare.

Located in the developing waterside district of Jätkäsaari, the listed Lars Sonck-designed warehouse building has been transformed, by interior architect Joanna Laajisto, into a bustling design emporium for the week.

This year, Helsinki has further proved it can put on a cool show, with 40 exhibitors in residence, from artful student works to international talent, the latter exemplified in the installation ’Japanese Design Revisited’ by Lexus. Curated by Stockholm-based Ikko Yokoyama, the crafted display included tech pieces by fashion designer Issey Miyake, aluminium ’Pipegram’ toys by Ryu Kozeki and pigmented handmade tin tumblers called ’Four Seasons’, launched this year by Jin Kuramoto for Nague.

From the student works on display, Aalto University’s ‘Sybaris’ project stood out as particularly cutting-edge. Named after the Greek city where inhabitants sought opulent pleasure and passion within luxury, the young designers took it upon themselves to interpret sensuality and pleasure in form. A variety of technological and interactive pieces were developed using idiosyncratic materials – from ’The Brushstroke’’s wafer thin, oxide dyed paper-clay ceramics, created by Anni-Marja Kuula; to more literal pleasure pieces such as Laura Maldonado’s ’Mimame’, crafted in anything from feathers and pink granite to silver chains, in unusual ornamental hanging shapes.

Other innovative projects included the recently launched architecture enterprise Atelier House, by brother-sister duo Ateljé Sotamaa. The designers have conjured up the ideal answer to creating dream holiday homes made purely out of wood. Starting from sketches and then moving to 3D digital models, they allow clients to engage in every step of the design process, with the aim of creating affordable bespoke homes. The project is currently focusing on houses located on islands near Helsinki, with prototype models made of locally and sustainably sourced spruce and birch. Also being furniture designers, Ateljé Sotamaa can even kit out the houses’ interiors. It’s the full package.

Amidst the installations there were also furniture shows by the usual Nordic big hitters, including Carl Hansen and Kinnarps, while food was provided by wild herb foraging chef Sami Tallberg, popping up just for the occasion in an organically designed space at the top of the concrete set.

These oxide dyed paper-clay ceramics – called ’The Brushstroke’, by Anni-Marja Kuula – are part of the ’Sybaris’ exhibition devised by students from Aalto University

Also showing as part of ‘Sybaris’ are these ’Planetary Bowls’ by Erin Turkoglu. The free blown glass constructions continuously spin on their table, changing the visualisation of the creamy pastel colours. Photography: Mari Mäkiö

Aalto University student Laura Maldonado’s ’Mimame’ pieces engage with the senses in their use different materials – from pink granite to silver chains in unusual ornamental style shapes

An installation by Lexus called ’Japanese Design Revisited’ was also on show. Curated by Stockholm-based Ikko Yokoyama, it included these Jun Murakoshi vases

Wallpaper* Newsletter

Share your email to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world

Please keep me up to date with special offers and news from Wallpaper and other brands within the TI Media. UK Group.

Please keep me up to date with special offers and news just by email from carefully selected companies. Your personal details will not be shared with those companies - we send the emails and you can unsubscribe at any time.